Package substrate

ABSTRACT

A package substrate is disclosed. The package substrate includes a molding layer, a redistribution structure, and a build-up structure. The redistribution structure is embedded in the molding layer with a surface exposed by the molding layer. The build-up structure is formed on the bottom surface of the molding layer. An inner stress caused by a CTE difference between different materials in the package substrate is reduced by forming at least one groove which is arranged around the periphery of the redistribution structure onto the top surface of the molding layer, thereby improving the problem of the redistribution structure cracking in the prior art.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to a package substrate, and morespecifically to a package substrate for a high density package.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Miniaturization of electronic products is an inevitable trend in thismodern world. Accordingly, semiconductor chips and package substratesfor the chips have changed in their dimensions for meeting therequirements of low-profile, compact electronic products. Nowadays, thecircuit density of the semiconductor chip has become higher and higheras well as the pin count thereof, and pitches between conductive pads ofthe semiconductor chip have been reduced to nanoscale. However, pitchesbetween pads of a traditional flip-chip package substrate are only ataround a hundred micron. Accordingly, the traditional flip-chip packagesubstrate may not be applicable to a semiconductor chip with a highcircuit density and a high pin count. Furthermore, in a thermal cyclingreliability testing procedure, there exists a large coefficient ofthermal expansion (CTE) difference between the semiconductor chip andthe traditional flip-chip package substrate. This causes an uneventhermal stress and may destroy the connection between the packagesubstrate and the chip, thereby decreasing the reliability and productyield.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,269,337 discloses a package substrate. FIG. 1 depicts across-sectional view showing an application of the package substrate.The package substrate includes an interposer 212, a redistribution-layerstructure 213, a build-up structure 24, a molding layer 22, and asemiconductor chip 27. A redistribution structure 21 is consisted of theinterposer 212 and the redistribution-layer structure 213. Theinterposer 212 is made of glass, silicon, ceramic, or polymer. As shownin FIG. 1, the interposer 212 has a plurality of through-silicon vias(TSVs) 210 penetrating the bottom surface thereof. Theredistribution-layer structure 213 is formed on the top surface of theinterposer 212. The innermost circuit of the redistribution-layerstructure 213 is electrically connected to the top ends of the TSVs 210,and the outer most circuit of the redistribution-layer structure 213 hasa plurality of electrode pads 211. The redistribution structure 21 isembedded in the molding layer 22. The build-up structure 24 is formed onthe bottom surface of the molding layer 22. The build-up structure 24has a plurality of conductive vias 242, a portion of which areelectrically connected to the bottom ends of the TSVs 210 of theinterposer 212. The semiconductor chip 27 is a flip-chip electricallyconnected to the electrode pads 211 of the redistribution-layerstructure 213 through solder bumps 271, and an underfill material 270 isused to fill the space between the electrode pads 211 and thesemiconductor chip 27. A plurality of solder balls 26 are mounted onbonding pads 243 on the bottom side of the build-up structure 24, forbeing electrically connected to another electronic device such as aprinted circuit board (not shown in the figure).

By deploying the redistribution structure 21, the package substrate canovercome the dimension mismatch between the semiconductor chip 27 andthe printed circuit board. The semiconductor chip 27 with high-densityor small-pitch conductive pads 272 can be disposed on the printedcircuit board through the package substrate. Furthermore, the interposer212 serves as a CTE buffer between the semiconductor chip 27 and theprinted circuit board. Therefore, during thermal cycling reliabilitytesting procedure, uneven thermal stress caused in the package substratemay be reduced. This makes the structure of the package substrate morereliable.

However, a great CTE difference may exist since the CTE of theinterposer 212 is about 3 ppm/K and the CTE of the molding layer 22 anddielectric layers of the build-up layer 24 is about 5 to 15 ppm/K.Therefore, a great inner stress may occur in the embedded redistributionstructure 21 and cause the cracking and failure of the redistributionstructure 21.

Therefore, there is a need to provide a package substrate for overcomingthe above-mentioned disadvantages in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An objective of the present invention is to provide a package substratewhich can improve the problem of the redistribution structure crackingin the prior art.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a packagesubstrate which includes:

a molding layer having a first surface and a second surface oppositethereto;a redistribution structure embedded in the molding layer, theredistribution structure having a first side and a second side oppositethereto, the first side of the redistribution structure having aplurality of electrode pads exposed from the first surface of themolding layer, the second side of the redistribution structure having aplurality of conductive portions; anda build-up structure formed on the second surface of the molding layer,the build-up structure having a first side and a second side oppositethereto, the build-up structure having a wiring layer formed at thefirst side of the build-up structure and a plurality of electrode padsformed at the second side of the build-up structure, the conductiveportions at the second side of the redistribution structure and thewiring layer at the first side of the build-up structure beingelectrically connected to each other and being immersed in the packagesubstrate, the electrode pads at the first side of the redistributionstructure and the electrode pads at the second side of the build-upstructure being exposed from surfaces of the package substrate,wherein there is at least one groove on the first surface of the moldinglayer, and the groove is arranged around the periphery of theredistribution structure.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the groove has adepth that is greater than a thickness of the redistribution structure.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the groove has awidth between 10 μm and 200 μm.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the groove has awidth between 50 μm and 100 μm.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a residual moldingpart can be further disposed between the redistribution structure andthe groove.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the groove can befurther filled with a filling material. The filling material has amodulus that is less than the moduli of the materials of the inner wallsof the groove. The filling material can be an elastic material.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the fillingmaterial can be a low-modulus material such as silicone.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the residualmolding part has a width between 10 μm and 200 μm.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the residualmolding part has a width between 20 μm and 70 μm.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the distributiondensity of the electrode pads at the first side of the redistributionstructure is higher than that of the electrode pads at the second sideof the build-up structure.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the size anddimension of the electrode pads at the first side of the redistributionstructure are smaller than that of the electrode pads at the second sideof the build-up structure.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the redistributionstructure contains a through-holed interposer and a redistribution-layerstructure, the conductive portions are conductive through holes, thethrough-holed interposer has a first side and a second side oppositethereto and the conductive through holes penetrating the first side andthe second side, each of the conductive through holes has a first endsurface on the first side of the through-holed interposer and a secondend surface on the second side of the through-holed interposer, thesecond side of the through-holed interposer and the second end surfacesof the conductive through holes are flush with the second surface of themolding layer, the redistribution-layer structure is disposed on thefirst side of the through-holed interposer and the first end surfaces ofthe conductive through holes and is electrically connected to the firstend surfaces of the conductive through holes, and an outermost layer ofthe redistribution-layer structure has the electrode pads exposed fromthe first surface of the molding layer.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the redistributionstructure is a core sheet, the core sheet includes a plurality of metallayers and a plurality of dielectric layers alternatively stacked, andthe conductive portions are electrode pads.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the dielectriclayers of the core sheet can be made of an organic polymer.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the core sheet isa flexible sheet.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the material ofthe dielectric layers of the core sheet can be an inorganic substancesuch as glass, silicon or ceramics.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the electrode padsat the first side of the redistribution structure are employed forconnecting to at least one semiconductor chip.

In one exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the electrode padsat the second side of the build-up structure are employed for connectingto a printed circuit board.

The present invention has obvious advantages and beneficial effects overthe prior art. The package substrate of the present invention accordingto the above technical scheme has at least the following advantages andbeneficial effects. In the present invention, an inner stress caused bya CTE difference between different materials in the package substrate isreduced by forming at least one groove which is arranged around theperiphery of the redistribution structure onto the first surface of themolding layer, thereby overcoming the CTE mismatch between theredistribution structure, the molding layer, and the build-up structure,thus solving the problem of the redistribution structure cracking in theprior art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an application of a prior artpackage substrate;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a package substrate according to afirst embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the package substrate of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a package substrate according toanother form of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a top view of the package substrate of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a package substrate according to asecond embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a top view of the package substrate of FIG. 6; and

FIGS. 8 to 10 are top views of the package substrates according to otherembodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail with thetechnical matters, structural features, achieved objects, and effectswith reference to the accompanying drawings as follows.

Please refer to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of apackage substrate 1 according to a first embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 3 is a top view of the package substrate of FIG. 2. Thepackage substrate 1 includes a molding layer 22, a build-up structure24, and a redistribution structure 21. The redistribution structure 21contains a through-holed interposer 212 and a redistribution-layerstructure 213. The molding layer 22 has a first surface 22 a and asecond surface 22 b opposite thereto. The redistribution structure 21 isembedded in the molding layer 22 but the first surface 22 a of themolding layer 22 exposes a part of the surface of theredistribution-layer structure 213. The build-up structure 24 is formedon the second surface 22 b of the molding layer 22.

The through-holed interposer 212 has a first side 21 a and a second side21 b opposite thereto and a plurality of conductive through holes 210penetrating the first side 21 a and the second side 21 b. Each of theconductive through holes 210 has a first end surface 210 a on the firstside 21 a of the through-holed interposer 212 and a second end surface210 b on the second side 21 b of the through-holed interposer 212. Thesecond side 21 b of the through-holed interposer 212 and the second endsurfaces 210 b of the conductive through holes 210 are flush with thesecond surface 22 b of the molding layer 22. The redistribution-layerstructure 213 is disposed on the first side 21 a of the through-holedinterposer 212 and the first end surfaces 210 a of the conductivethrough holes 210 and is electrically connected to the first endsurfaces 210 a of the conductive through holes 210. The outermost layerof the redistribution-layer structure 213 has a plurality of electrodepads 211 exposed from the first surface 22 a of the molding layer 22.The through-holed interposer 212 is made of glass, ceramic, singlecrystal silicon, or polysilicon and has a thickness of 100 μm.

The build-up structure 24 has a first side 24 a and a second side 24 bopposite thereto. The build-up structure 24 has a wiring layer 241formed at the first side 24 a of the build-up structure 24 and aplurality of electrode pads 243 formed at the second side 24 b of thebuild-up structure 24. The second end surfaces 210 b of the conductivethrough holes 210 in the through-holed interposer 212 and the wiringlayer 241 at the first side 24 a of the build-up structure 24 areelectrically connected to each other and are immersed in the packagesubstrate 1. The electrode pads 211 at the outermost layer of theredistribution-layer structure 213 and the electrode pads 243 at thesecond side 24 b of the build-up structure 24 are exposed from thesurfaces of the package substrate 1. The distribution density of theelectrode pads 211 at the outermost layer of the redistribution-layerstructure 213 is higher than that of the electrode pads 243 at thesecond side 24 b of the build-up structure 24. The size and dimension ofthe electrode pads 211 at the outermost layer of theredistribution-layer structure 213 are smaller than that of theelectrode pads 243 at the second side 24 b of the build-up structure 24.The electrode pads 211 at the outermost layer of theredistribution-layer structure 213 are employed for connecting to atleast one semiconductor chip (not shown in the figure). The electrodepads 243 at the second side 24 b of the build-up structure 24 areemployed for connecting to a printed circuit board (not shown in thefigure).

There is a groove 220 on the first surface 22 a of the molding layer 22,and the groove 220 is arranged around the periphery of theredistribution structure 21. The groove 220 has a depth D that isgreater than a thickness H of the redistribution structure 21. Thegroove 220 has a width W1 of 100 μm. The groove 220 can be formed by anultraviolet (UV) laser. A residual molding part 221 is disposed betweenthe redistribution structure 21 and the groove 220, and is used forprotecting the redistribution structure 21. The material of the residualmolding part 221 is the same as the material of the molding layer 22.The residual molding part 221 has a width W2 of 50 μm. In anotherembodiment of the present invention, the groove 220 can be furtherfilled with a low-modulus material such as silicone (not shown in thefigure).

FIGS. 4 and 5 are another form of the package substrate 1 of FIG. 2. Inwhich, a groove 220 is provided on a first surface 22 a of a moldinglayer 22. The groove 220 is arranged around the periphery of aredistribution structure 21 which contains a through-holed interposer212 and a redistribution-layer structure 213. The groove 220 abuts theredistribution structure 21.

Please refer to FIGS. 6 and 7. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of apackage substrate 1 according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 7 is a top view of the package substrate of FIG. 6. Thepackage substrate 1 includes a core sheet 100 (redistributionstructure), a build-up structure 200, and a molding layer 300. Themolding layer 300 has a first surface 304 a and a second surface 304 b.The first surface 304 a and the second surface 304 b are on oppositesides of the molding layer 300. The core sheet 100 is embedded in themolding layer 300 with a surface exposed by the molding layer 300. Thebuild-up structure 200 is formed on the second surface 304 b of themolding layer 300.

The core sheet 100 has a plurality of metal layers 101 and a pluralityof dielectric layers 102 disposed therein. The metal layers 101 and thedielectric layers 102 are alternatively formed by stacking one on top ofanother. Any two adjacent metal layers 101 can be electrically connectedby a conductive via 103 formed therebetween. It is noted that althoughthe dielectric layers 102 of FIG. 6 and successive figures are shown bya single-layer configuration for simplicity, the core sheet 100 actuallyconsists of many dielectric layers. Specifically, the dielectric layers102 of the core sheet 100 can be made of an organic polymer. Polyimidecan be used as an illustrative example. Also, the material of thedielectric layers 102 of the core sheet 100 can be an inorganicsubstance as well. The material of the dielectric layers 102 can beimplemented by ceramic or glass, for example, Silicon Nitride, SiliconOxide, and water glass. Other materials can be considered as well.

The core sheet 100 has two opposite sides, that is, a first side 104 aand a second side 104 b. Specifically, the core sheet 100 has a firstsurface 105 a at the first side 104 a and a second surface 105 b at thesecond side 104 b. There are a plurality of electrode pads 106 formed atthe first side 104 a and the second side 104 b of the core sheet 100,preferably, formed beneath the first surface 105 a and the secondsurface 105 b. The electrode pads 106 of the core sheet 100 serve aselectrical connecting points for electrically connecting the core sheet100 to other electronic components. As shown in FIG. 6, the moldinglayer 300 exposes the first surface 105 a of the core sheet 100, and thedistribution density of the electrode pads 106 formed at the first side104 a of the core sheet 100 is greater than that of the electrode pads106 formed at the second side 104 b.

The build-up structure 200 has a first side 204 a and a second side 204b. The first side 204 a and the second side 204 b are on opposite sidesof the build-up structure 200. The build-up structure 200 has a wiringlayer 201 formed at the first side 204 a, a plurality of electrode pads206 formed at the second side 204 b, a plurality of conductive vias 203disposed between the wiring layer 201 and the electrode pads 206, and atleast one dielectric layer 202. The wiring layer 201 formed at the firstside 204 a and the electrode pads 206 formed at the second side 204 bare formed in the outermost layers of the build-up structure 200. Asshown in FIG. 6, the wiring layer 201 formed at the first side 204 a ofthe build-up structure 200 is electrically connected to the electrodepads 106 formed at the second side 104 b of the core sheet 100. Thebuild-up structure 200 preferably has a protective insulating layer 207such as a solder mask, formed on an outermost dielectric layer at thesecond side 204 b of the build-up structure 200. The protectiveinsulating layer 207 has a plurality of openings 208, through which theelectrode pads 206 at the second side 204 b are exposed, serving aselectrical connecting points. It is noted that the build-up structure200 may be employed with a multi-layer structure having a plurality ofmetal layers and dielectric layers, and preferably, may haveinterconnections therebetween.

The distribution density of the electrode pads 106 at the first side 104a of the core sheet 100 is higher than that of the electrode pads 206 atthe second side 204 b of the build-up structure 200. The size anddimension of the electrode pads 106 at the first side 104 a of the coresheet 100 are smaller than that of the electrode pads 206 at the secondside 204 b of the build-up structure 200. The electrode pads 106 at thefirst side 104 a of the core sheet 100 are employed for connecting to atleast one semiconductor chip (not shown in the figure). The electrodepads 206 at the second side 204 b of the build-up structure 200 areemployed for connecting to a printed circuit board (not shown in thefigure).

There is a groove 320 on the first surface 304 a of the molding layer300, and the groove 320 is arranged around the periphery of the coresheet 100. The groove 320 has a depth D that is greater than a thicknessH of the core sheet 100. The groove 320 has a width W1 of 100 μm. Thegroove 320 can be formed by an UV laser. A residual molding part 321 isdisposed between the core sheet 100 and the groove 320, is used forprotecting the core sheet 100. The material of the residual molding part321 is the same as the material of the molding layer 300. The residualmolding part 321 has a width W2 of 50 μm. In another embodiment of thepresent invention, the groove 320 can be further filled with alow-modulus material such as silicone (not shown in the figure).

In other embodiments of the present invention, the groove 220, 320 inFIG. 3 or 7 can has various forms, e.g., refer to FIG. 8 to FIG. 10.However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

As mentioned above, in the package substrate 1 of the present invention,an inner stress caused by a CTE difference between different materialsin the package substrate 1 is reduced by forming at least one groove220, 320 which is arranged around the periphery of the redistributionstructure 21, 100 onto the first surface 22 a, 304 a of the moldinglayer 22, 300, thereby overcoming the CTE mismatch between theredistribution structure 21, 100, the molding layer 22, 300, and thebuild-up structure 24, 200, thus solving the problem of theredistribution structure 21, 100 cracking in the prior art.

It should be understood, however, that even though numerouscharacteristics and advantages of the present invention have been setforth in the foregoing description, together with details of thestructure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrativeonly, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape,size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention tothe full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms inwhich the appended claims are expressed.

1-17. (canceled)
 18. A package substrate, comprising: a redistributionstructure having a plurality of top electrode pads, the plurality of topelectrode pads being configured with a first density adaptive for a chipto mount thereon; a build-up layer configured on bottom of theredistribution structure, the build-up layer having a plurality ofbottom mounting pads, the plurality of bottom mounting pads beingconfigured with a second density adaptive for the substrate to mountonto a printed circuit board, the second density being lower than thefirst density; a molding layer embedding the redistribution structuretherein; a groove extending around the redistribution structure; and adielectric material filled in the groove, wherein the groove contains noconductive material, a first portion of the molding layer is interposedbetween the groove and the redistribution structure, the material of thedielectric material filled in the groove is different from the materialof the molding layer, and a second portion of the molding layer isinterposed, in a thickness direction of the package substrate, betweenthe redistribution structure and the build-up layer.
 19. A packagesubstrate as claimed in claim 18, wherein a width of the first portionof the molding layer is smaller than a width of the groove.
 20. Apackage substrate as claimed in claim 18, further comprising: a chipmounted on the plurality of top electrode pads, wherein theredistribution structure and the groove are entirely below the chip, thebuild-up layer includes a topmost dielectric layer in which a topmostcircuitry of the build-up layer is embedded, the groove extends from atop surface of the molding layer, through an entire thickness of themolding layer, and into the topmost dielectric layer of the build-uplayer, the molding layer has a bottom surface in direct contact with atop surface of the topmost dielectric layer of the build-up layer, thegroove is co-elevational with an entire thickness of the redistributionstructure, and the depth of the groove is greater than the entirethickness of the redistribution structure.
 21. A package substrate asclaimed in claim 18, wherein the dielectric material filled in thegroove is silicone.
 22. A package substrate as claimed in claim 18,further comprising: an interposer embedded in the redistributionstructure.
 23. A package substrate as claimed in claim 22, wherein thedielectric material filled in the groove is silicone.
 24. A packagesubstrate, comprising: a redistribution structure having a plurality oftop electrode pads, the plurality of top electrode pads being configuredwith a first density; a build-up layer configured on bottom of theredistribution structure, the build-up layer having a plurality ofbottom mounting pads, the plurality of bottom mounting pads beingconfigured with a second density adaptive for the substrate to mountonto a printed circuit board, the second density being lower than thefirst density; a molding layer embedding the redistribution structuretherein; and a groove extending around the redistribution structure,wherein the groove contains no conductive material, the groove extendsfrom a top surface of the molding layer, through an entire thickness ofthe molding layer, and into a portion of the build-up layer.
 25. Apackage substrate as claimed in claim 24, wherein a bottom of the grooveis below a bottommost circuitry of the redistribution structure.
 26. Apackage substrate as claimed in claim 25, wherein the groove isco-elevational with an entire thickness of the redistribution structure,and the depth of the groove is greater than the entire thickness of theredistribution structure.
 27. A package substrate as claimed in claim26, wherein a portion of the groove above the bottom of the groove isco-elevational with a topmost circuitry of the build-up layer.
 28. Apackage substrate as claimed in claim 27, wherein the build-up layerincludes a topmost dielectric layer in which the topmost circuitry ofthe build-up layer is embedded, and the molding layer has a bottomsurface in direct contact with a top surface of the topmost dielectriclayer of the build-up layer.
 29. A package substrate as claimed in claim24, further comprising: an interposer embedded in the redistributionstructure.
 30. A package substrate as claimed in claim 24, wherein thebuild-up layer includes a topmost dielectric layer in which a topmostcircuitry of the build-up layer is embedded, and the molding layer has abottom surface in direct contact with a top surface of the topmostdielectric layer of the build-up layer.
 31. A package substrate asclaimed in claim 30, wherein the groove is co-elevational with an entirethickness of the redistribution structure, and a depth of the groove isgreater than the entire thickness of the redistribution structure.
 32. Apackage substrate as claimed in claim 30, wherein the groove extendscontinuously around the redistribution structure.
 33. A packagesubstrate as claimed in claim 30, wherein the groove abuts theredistribution structure.
 34. A package substrate as claimed in claim30, wherein, in a top plan view, the groove comprises four independentsection grooves arranged along four sides of the redistributionstructure, respectively.
 35. A package substrate as claimed in claim 30,wherein, in a top plan view, the groove comprises a plurality of holesarranged along four sides of the redistribution structure.
 36. A packagesubstrate as claimed in claim 30, wherein, in a top plan view, thegroove comprises a plurality of rectangular grooves arranged along foursides of the redistribution structure.
 37. A package substrate asclaimed in claim 30, further comprising: an interposer embedded in theredistribution structure.